An electrical connection box has a substrate carrying electrical components, a molded synthetic resin casing fitted on the substrate at the lower side thereof, and a connector receivable in the casing and mountable at a predetermined position on the substrate. The connector has electrical, terminals engageable with electrical terminals of the substrate. A fastener is inserted in the substrate to draw the connector to its predetermined position. A holder for the connector is molded in one piece with the casing, and is open at its upper side to receive the connector. The connector and the holder have holding elements which are mutually engageable to hold the connector in the holder, prior to the operation of the fastener to draw the connector to its predetermined position, whereby the fastener through the connector holds the casing at its fitted position on the substrate.
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1. An electrical connection box comprising:
(i) a substrate carrying electrical components and having a plurality of electrical terminals; (ii) a casing adapted to be fitted on said substrate at the lower side thereof; (iii) at least one connector receivable in said casing and mountable at a predetermined position on said substrate, and having a plurality of electrical terminals engageable with said electrical terminals of said substrate when said at least one connector is brought to said predetermined position; (iv) at least one fastener inserted through said substrate and engageable with said at least one connector and operable to draw said at least one connector to said predetermined position; and (v) at least one holder that holds said at least one connector, each at least one holder being integrally molded with said casing, said at least one holder being open at an upper side to receive said at least one connector, wherein (vi) said at least one connector and said at least one holder have respective holding elements which are mutually engageable to hold said at least one connector in said at least one holder, prior to the operation of said at least one fastener to draw said at least one connector to said predetermined position, whereby said at least one fastener through said at least one connector holds said casing at a fitted position on said substrate, (vii) said respective holding elements mutually engage when said casing is fitted on said substrate, and (viii) said at least one holder is constituted by at least two upstanding walls in said casing, and said holding elements comprise mutually abutting projections on mutually opposed surfaces of said at least one connector and said upstanding walls.
6. An electrical connection box comprising:
(i) a substrate carrying electrical components and having a plurality of electrical terminals; (ii) a casing adapted to be fitted on said substrate at the lower side thereof; (iii) at least one connector receivable in said casing and mountable at a predetermined position on said substrate, and having a plurality of electrical terminals engageable with said electrical terminals of said substrate when said at least one connector is brought to said predetermined position; (iv) at least one fastener inserted through said substrate and engageable with said at least one connector and operable to draw said at least one connector to said predetermined position; and (v) at least one holder that holds said at least one connector, each at least one holder being integrally molded with said casing, said at least one holder being open at an upper side to receive said at least one connector, wherein (vi) said at least one connector and said at least one holder have respective holding elements which are mutually engageable to hold said at least one connector in said at least one holder, prior to the operation of said at least one fastener to draw said at least one connector to said predetermined position, whereby said at least one fastener through said at least one connector holds said casing at a fitted position on said substrate, (vii) said respective holding elements mutually engage when the at least one connector is at said predetermined position, and (viii) said at least one holder is constituted by at least two upstanding walls in said casing, and said holding elements comprise mutually abutting projections on mutually opposed surfaces of said at least one connector and said upstanding walls.
5. A vehicle having an electrical connection box mounted therein, said electrical connection box comprising:
(i) a substrate carrying electrical components and having a plurality of electrical terminals; (ii) a casing adapted to be fitted on said substrate at the lower side thereof; (iii) at least one connector receivable in said casing and mountable at a predetermined position on said substrate, and having a plurality of electrical terminals engageable with said electrical terminals of said substrate when said at least one connector is brought to said predetermined position; (iv) at least one fastener inserted through said substrate and engageable with said at least one connector and operable to draw said at least one connector to said predetermined position; and (v) at least one holder that holds said at least one connector, each at least one holder being integrally molded with said casing, said at least one holder being open at its upper side to receive said at least one connector, wherein (vi) said at least one connector and said at least one holder have respective holding elements which are mutually engageable to hold said at least one connector in said at least one holder, prior to the operation of said at least one fastener to draw said at least one connector to its said predetermined position, whereby said at least one fastener through said at least one connector holds said casing at a fitted position on said substrate, (vii) said respective holding elements mutually engage when said casing is fitted on said substrate, and (viii) said at least one holder is constituted by at least two upstanding walls in said casing, and said holding elements comprise mutually abutting projections on mutually opposed surfaces of said at least one connector and said upstanding walls.
10. A vehicle having an electrical connection box mounted therein, said electrical connection box comprising:
(i) a substrate carrying electrical components and having a plurality of electrical terminals; (ii) a casing adapted to be fitted on said substrate at the lower side thereof; (iii) at least one connector receivable in said casing and mountable at a predetermined position on said substrate, and having a plurality of electrical terminals engageable with said electrical terminals of said substrate when said at least one connector is brought to said predetermined position; (iv) at least one fastener inserted through said substrate and engageable with said at least one connector and operable to draw said at least one connector to said predetermined position; and (v) at least one holder that holds said at least one connector, each at least one holder being integrally molded with said casing, said at least one holder being open at its upper side to receive said at least one connector, wherein (vi) said at least one connector and said at least one holder have respective holding elements which are mutually engageable to hold said at least one connector in said at least one holder, prior to the operation of said at least one fastener to draw said at least one connector to its said predetermined position, whereby said at least one fastener through said at least one connector holds said casing at a fitted position on said substrate, (vii) said respective holding elements mutually engage when the at least one connector is at said predetermined position, and (viii) said at least one holder is constituted by at least two upstanding walls in said casing, and said holding elements comprise mutually abutting projections on mutually opposed surfaces of said at least one connector and said understanding walls.
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9. An electrical connection box according to
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrical connection box suitable to be mounted on a vehicle, such as an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
When assembling the electrical connection box of
However, in this construction, the gap between the connectors 34 and the lower covers 37 is large. Therefore, vibration causes both the connectors 34 and the lower cover 37 to be loosened and to shake. Consequently, noise is apt to be generated.
Further, because the lower cover 37 is, required in assembling the electrical connection box, a large number of component parts are required. Thus, the manufacturing cost of the electrical connection box is high.
GB-A-2338355 shows an electrical connection box similar to that of
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connection box that has a construction which does not generate noise easily and can be made at low cost.
According to the present invention, there is provided an electrical connection box that includes:
(i) a substrate that carries electrical components and has a plurality of electrical terminals,
(ii) a molded synthetic resin casing adapted to be fitted on the substrate at the lower side thereof,
(iii) at least one connector that is receivable in the casing and mountable at a predetermined position on the substrate and has a plurality of electrical terminals engageable with said electrical terminals, of the substrate when the connector is brought to its predetermined position,
(iv) at least one fastener inserted in the substrate and engageable with the at least one connector and operable to draw the at least one connector to the predetermined position, and
(v) at least one holder for the connector that is molded in one piece with the casing and is open at its upper side to receive the connector.
In the electrical connection box, the connector(s) and the holder(s) have respective holding elements which are mutually engageable to hold the connector(s) in the holder(s), prior to the operation of the fastener to draw the connector to its predetermined position, whereby the fastener(s) through the connector(s) holds the casing at its fitted position on the substrate.
Preferably, the holder is constituted by at least two upstanding walls in the casing and the holding elements include mutually abutting projections on mutually opposed surfaces of the connector and the upstanding walls.
Preferably, the holding element of each upstanding wall has a cantilever arm projecting downwardly and integrally connected at its upper end with the side wall. This projection is preferably at the lower free end of the cantilever arm.
In the present invention, the connector is first engaged by the holder by insertion from above. The holder is integral with the casing, so that loosening of the connector from the casing is prevented. No additional part, such as the lower cover 37 of
In the present invention, each holder is preferably integral with the casing. In particular, the holding element of each holder is integral, so that the provision of the holder(s) does not increase the number of component parts. Thus the electrical connection box can be produced at a low cost.
It is easy to assemble the electrical connection box.
In this specification and claims, the directional terms "upper", "lower" etc. are used for convenience and clarity of description, and are not intended to limit the invention. The electrical connection box of the invention may be assembled and used in any appropriate orientation.
Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of non-limitative example, with reference to the drawings, in which:
An electrical connection box 1, suitable for a vehicle, shown in
As shown in
A plurality of molded connectors 15 (two in this embodiment) is accommodated in the space 14 between the lower surface of the junction block 2 and the base 13 of the lower cover 11. Each connector 15 is made of synthetic resin and is of rectangular shape. A plurality of female contacts or terminals 16 is embedded inside the connectors 15 such that the female contacts 16 extend vertically. The male terminal tabs of the bus bars of the junction block 2 can be removably inserted into the open ends of the female contacts 16 at the upper surface of the connector 15. A through-hole 17 extending vertically may be formed at the center of the upper surface of the connector 15. A threaded nut 18 is embedded inside the through-hole 17, and a bolt 6 is screwed into the nut 18. The wire harness (not shown) extends from the lower surface of the connectors 15, with each electrical wire of the wire harness connected to one of the female contacts 16.
The electrical connection box 1 may have an arrangement for fixing the connectors 15 temporarily to the lower cover 11, before the connectors 15 are fixed to the junction block 2.
As shown in
The lower cover 11 has a pair of open-topped boxes 22 serving as holders for the connectors, molded integrally with the outer walls and base of the cover 11. Each box 22 is formed by four walls 22a standing up from the inner surface of the base 13 of the lower cover 11 and is rectangular. The external dimension of the box 22 is a littler larger than that of the connector 15. The height (depth) of the box 22 is also a little larger than that of the connector 15. Thus, when the connector 15 ,is inserted into the box 22, the box 22 surrounds the entire: periphery of the connector 15.
Each box 22 has four flexible locking pieces 23 serving as' second holding elements, formed at a plurality of positions around the box 22 on the respective walls 22a, corresponding in position to the four locking projections 21 of the connector 15. In each connector-holding box 22, a vertical slot 24 is formed at the center of each of the four walls 22a constituting the box 22. Abase portion (upper end) of the locking piece 23 is connected with the upper edge of the slot 24. The locking piece 23 extends toward the lower end of the box 22. A claw 25 is formed on the inner side of the front portion (lower end) of the locking piece 23. As shown in
In assembling the electrical connection box 1 having the above-described construction, the wire harnesses connected with the connectors 15 are drawn out through holes 26 formed in the base 13 of the lower cover 11. As shown in
Then, the lower cover 11 is fitted on the junction block 2 from below to support the junction block 2 at the stepped portion 12 of the cover 11. The bolts 6 inserted through the holes 5 of the junction block 2 are engaged in the nuts 18 and tightened. As a result, as shown in
Thereafter, an upper cover (not shown) may be mounted on the lower cover 11 to cover the junction block 2 from above.
This embodiment provides the following effects:
(1) The electrical connection box 1 of the embodiment has integral structure that holds the connectors 15 in the cover 11, including the locking projections 21 and the boxes 22 with the locking pieces 23. Thus, no lower cover fitted on the connector 15 is required when temporarily fixing the connector 15 to the lower cover 11. Accordingly, the electrical connection box of the embodiment has a smaller number of component parts than the known box of
(2) In the electrical connection box 1, the entire periphery of the connector 15 is surrounded by the holding box 22. In addition, the locking projections. 21 engage the flexible locking pieces 23, preventing movement of the connector 15 out of the box 22. Therefore, the connector 15 is reliably retained in position in the lower cover 11.
(3) The box 22 and the locking piece 23 are integral with the cover 11. Thus, the formation of a plurality of the locking pieces 23 does not increase the number of component parts. The electrical connection box 1 can be produced at a low cost. Because the claw 25 is formed on the inner side of the lower end of the locking piece 23, the locking projection 21 can be reliably locked to the lower end of the locking piece 23. The locking pieces 23 on the box 22 extend downward, so that it is possible to mount the connector 15 in the box 22 smoothly so that assembly of the electrical connection box 1 is easy.
(4) As
The following modifications of the embodiment within the scope of the invention may be mentioned:
The holder 22 is not necessarily box-shaped, i.e. it need not be continuous such that it surrounds the connector 15 completely in a horizontal direction. For example, the box 22 may be divided into sections at its corners or at other positions. In the electrical connection box 1 of another embodiment of the invention shown in
Instead of the holding box 22 projecting from the base 13 of the lower cover 11, it may project from the inner surface of the side walls of the cover 11.
Instead of embedding the nut 18 in the connector 15, the connector 15 may be fixed to the junction block 2 in another manner by the bolt 6, or a fastener other than the bolt 6 may be used.
An electrical part-mounting block (for example, relay block, fuse block and the like) other than the junction block 2 may be used to construct the electrical connection box 1.
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Executed on | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance | Frame | Reel | Doc |
Apr 27 2001 | Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Ltd. | (assignment on the face of the patent) | / | |||
Apr 27 2001 | SUZUKI, TATSUO | Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Ltd | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 011765 | /0877 |
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